Automatic lifesaving device



Dern 16,1947. J.FRA-KEL 2,432741, y

AUTOMATIC LIFESAVING DEVICE Filed June 10, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheetv l im I \IN VEN TOR. JAmc `Hummer.

BY f/ Dec- 16, 1947 J. FRANKEL 2,432,741

AUTOMATIC LIFESAVING DEVICE Filed June l0; 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 l'II|41 I f WF@ 21S/l); 69% i w h.. I

"III

WENTOR Jmrc @mmm BY Y Y Patented Dec. 16, 1947 AUTOMATIC? LIFE SAYINGDEVICE t Jack Frankel, BrooklyngzN.: i

Appleationj'ne 10; 1946, ,TSerial\No.. 675,898.

accident;V the-workmancanbe'supported Without 10e injuryand-firescuedjfrom-his precarious-position Another-i object* is,ntoprovidea safetyf device that can b`e-easily and,a'djlistablysecuredto; al n earbycable and vto Fan safetybelt- A- furtherobject'A is to`provide-asaetv device" 15s frictionally `v held bywable, carrying;means andJ having cable aligningmaris-arialcable clamping; means? a-lloffnovelconstmeti-on,`

These Y ariel otherobjects f are accomplished in p art and brieilyjb'yvprovi-ding a safety^- device comprise-d" o-f` aframe, cable4 carrying`means cable aligning "mea-ns', cable" clamping means, and? fasteningelements whereby thed'evce can be detachablwsecnred" to -a'icaole andia,safetyr belt. v Tliecable' carrying'meanawhicli forms an` imT portant part`vl of tliis invention, consists*` of ja bar A hingeably--joined'at-oneu end to a frame side men'iber'andiY releasably` joined at' itsother endj to-a`second frameside men'iber.A Twocablegllides, aremounteclontlfie bar; one ofthembeing mov- 30 able to4 adjust thedistance1 betweemthemandl botl'rY Having; semi-cylindrical j cuneateV4projecting end; portions facinggeach other andi adapted toy receivebetween tl'iempprtions oa.c,ablew o,und; about/the bar.

A flangedrgrojection extending outwardly from, aR center crossv piece ofthe frame aligns l, the, downward,` extending portionwoi the. cable. sothat itk can be, rmly clampedl between jaws;n of. the, clamping means.

For further. comprehensiona 0l; the, invention,` and oft2 the lObj ectsi and advantages thereof; y,refe erence. will be f had to.I the;following description, and accompanying; drawings and; t0; the anpended; claims; in,- whchg the; various;V novel fea:r tures 0f theinventiomare:moreeparticularlyuset;` forth;`

In theaccompanying; drawings `forming a miaterial-partlofthis:disclbsure-f-e-4 Fig: 1':- is'. alperspectiveviewfof asafety-deviceorrautornatic :lifeprotecton embody-ing tilie=inventoniherein; saiddevice'being: shownrused 2in combination with ai safety?belt toe secure apersoni workingroma,seafoldtma guy rope.A

Fi'g. f 2fis a perspectiveviewbiytheafety de*- vce sli-own in Fig; 1:

Fig; K 3 is au front elevation of the safety belt shown n-Figgg 12.

Rigs; Yl andi?,` are-front and rear' elevations respectively ofltl'resafetyV device sli'owrrjnY Figs.` 1' and^2.

Fig; (l1-isv agside; elevation vci said' device.-

lii'gsfl` andSiare sectional Lviewsalong "the lines I1-'I andi'f-Brespectively ot-"Figg 4.

Fig'.` 91is a-perspective view-ol one off'the' cable guideelements;A ofthef device;

Fig, lois-a'perspective-'viewf-of the-other-of the cable-f guideelementsu nof the; device.-

Inthe-drawings-- and-Qin the specificatiominz which like;referencenumbers designatesimilare parts; asafetydeviceorautomatic-liffeprotectorm` device I 5i constructedin accordance withthe-invention-herein; is adapted oruse'witha safetyf beltVsuchaslthefbel-t- Iii-*shown in Figi.F 3,l to securea person working infan elevated 2 position as theA person` IFI stiownon asca1o1d-I8l in`Fig.1',- toa'vguy -r-ope-Aor cable I 9? IAhellifeprotector device 4- I 5f-iscomprised-1 of a frame 20, cable carrying means 2l, cable aligningmeans-22; cable-clamping means 23, and fasteningv means.A ZLforreleasablwsecuring the-frame to-the belt I6.,

Theframef-ZIl-hastwo'uprightf side-members 25"- vand-t 25%4 a. centertcross. piece -26-'securedat= itsends-to `the sidemembers -vbycbolts 21;and-a bot-n tom-crosspiece-28` secured at=its ends to thefside membersby bolts 29.

The cable carry-ingffmeans `2 Iv consistscolA a ybar- 3d; two bracketsl2 and13I af and two Vcablegilides 32";Y and 32%. The bari- 3i-iszcylindricali and l has end: portions 3'31 andf 33My of-#reducedtransversesection disposed'betweenvarmsfi-and 34i1trespec tively `ofthebrackets 31| andL 3 Iawhich, irr turn,` are secured bybolts S'B-'totheupperendsof-= frameeside membersand- 252krespectively.y A 'pi-n` 36'extends through` the bracket aims- 34% and t'n'ef bar-- end 33e-1securingthem4 together-,1 hingeably. Ax screwf withprojectingwhandgrips-` 3 extendsf through-and =threadably engagesthe'bracketarrns34'and1the rod end33 detachf ably i securingj themAtogether so` thatl the bar- 3U i extendsacross and iii-front of the`frame-near dts' top:

The cableguide 32; (see Fig; 10) isa tube formedV with a cylindricalcenter portion 39'; al; cylindrical end portion IW of reducedtransverse" section, and'- aprojecting;` semi-cylindrica-li endA portion-4 I l Witl12a= cuneate 'longitudinal jsectionl ing' aplane normal l to-itsfaxisY and# isA adjustably positioned with the bar 38 extendingthrough its bore 42. A key 43, resting partly in a keyway 44 extendinglongitudinally in the bar, and partly in a keyway 45 in the bore 42,prevents the guide 32 from turning relative to the bar, and a set screw45, extending through the reduced end portion 46 and acting on thesurface of the bar, xes the guide 32 in position intermediate the endsof the bar, with the semi-cylindrical end portion 4I facing the cableguide 32a.

The cable guide 32a (see Fig. 9) is a cylindrical tube 41 with asemi-cylindrical projecting end portion 46 having a cuneate longitudinalsection in a plane normal to the axis of the cylinder, and is mounted onthe bar 39 near its end 33a adjacent the frame side member 25a, withsaid bar extending through the tube bore 49.

The protector device I5 is supported and frictionally held by the cableI9 which is wound or passed about the bar 39 in cable turns 59 betweentlie cable guides 32 and 32a, with a first half turn 5I adjacent to thecenter portion 39 of the cable guide 32, and a last half turn 52adjacent the tube 41 of the cable guide 32a. It will be noted that thesemi-cylindrical cuneate end portions 4I and 48 facilitate thespiralling of the cable about the bar 39, and also wedgeably ll thespace opposite the half turns, increasing the frictional grip andholding the turns compactly in position. The cable guide 32 can beadjusted longitudinally on the bar 30 by means of the set screw 46 toretain the cable turns and half turns firmly in compact position.

The cable aligning means 22 is a cylindrical projection 53 extendingoutwardly from the front of the center cross piece 26 intermediate itsends, said projection being provided with a transverse flange 54 at itsend removed from the cross piece. The projection 53 is positioned sothat a portion of the cable I9 extending downwardly from the half turn52 can rest between the iiange and center cross piece at |93, aligning adownwardly extending cable portion with clamp jaws of the cable clampingmeans 23 as will appear hereafter.

The cable clamping means 23 comprises a clamp arm 55 pivotally joinedintermediate its ends to a pivot 55 by a pivot pin 5l, and a spring 58.The pivot 51 projects outwardly from the front of the bottom cross piece28 being centrally disposed thereon, and the clamp arm 55 extendslongitudinally in front of said cross piece. The spring 58 is positionedwith its ends resting in spring seats 59 and 60 in the bottom crosspiece and clamp arm respectively, and acts to retain the clamp in closedposition with clamp end 6I rotated toward the cross piece, and theopposite clamp end 62 rotated away from the cross piece. The clamp end5I has a transversely extending arcuate cut out portion or jaw 63adapted to coact with an arcuate cut out portion or jaw 64 of a clamppiece 65 secured to the front of the bottom cross piece 28, to grip aportion of the downwardly extending aligned cable.

The fastening means 24 consists of two lines, chains or straps 66, eachhaving a ring or link 61 at one end and a snap hook 68 at the other end.Each line 66 is secured to the frame by its ring and to the safety beltI5 by its snap hook 68, the rings extending through holes 69 and 69'(1in the frame side members 25 and 25a respectively.

The safety belt I6 has a body encircling strap 'I0 and two legencircling straps 1I. The strap 'I9 is provided with two rings 'I2capable of engaging the snap hooks 68 to releasably secure the safetybelt to the automatic life protector device I5.

The device I5 can be installed as follows:

With the screw 31 removed and the guide 32 disassembled, the bar 30 isswung outwardly in gate fashion on the pin 36. The cable I9 can then bewound about the bar in as many cable turns 5I) as is desired and the twohalf turns 5I and 52. The cable guide 32 is then mounted on and keyed tothe rod by means of the key 43 and adjusted longitudinally to provide acompact tight assembly, after which the set screw 46 is tightened. Thebar can now be swung closed with its end 33 resting between the bracketarms 34, and the screw 31 engaged to retain the bar in closed position.If it is so desired, the screw 31 can be made in the form of a removablepin. The downwardly extending portion of the cable I9 is then aligned atI9il by placing it alongside the projection 53 between its flange 54 andthe center cross piece 26. The clamp is opened by forcing the clamp end62 toward the bottom cross piece 28 against the action of the spring 58,and the aligned cable I9 disposed between the coacting jaws 63 and 64.The user, who is provided with a safety belt such as the belt I6 havingfastening elements '12, can snap the hooks 68 onto the coacting engagingelements 12.

In the event that the scaffold collapses or the user slips, he will besupported against falling by the life protector device I5 which issecurely attached and clamped to the cable I9.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiments of myinvention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to theprecise constructions herein disclosed and the right is reserved to allchanges and modifications coming within the scope of the invention asdefined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A safety device for a person in an elevated position near a cable andprovided with a safety belt, the device comprising a frame, cablecarrying means, cable clamping means and fastening elements, the framehaving two side members and a cross piece extending between them, thecable carrying means consisting of a bar, hinge means, a pin and twocable guides, one end of the bar being pivotally joined to one of theside members by the hinge means, the other end of the bar beingreleasably secured to the other side member by the pin, each cable guidehaving a projecting end portion, the guides being mounted on the barwith their projecting end portions facing each other and adapted toreceive between them portions of the cable wound about the bar, thecable clamping means having a clamp arm pivotally secured to the framecross member, the clamp arm having a cut out portion adapted to grip aportion of the cable and to clamp it against the frame cross member, andthe fastening elements consisting of coacting elements on the frame andsafety belt capable of engaging to secure them together detachably.

2. A safety device for a person in an elevated position near a cable andprovided with a safety belt, the device comprising a frame, cablecarrying means, cable clamping means and fastening elements, the framehaving two side members and a cross piece extending between them, thecable carrying means consisting of a bar, hinge means, a pin and twocable guides, one end of the bar being pivotally joined to one of theside members by the hinge means, the other end of the bar beingreleasably secured to the other side member by a pin, each cable guidehaving a cuneate projecting end portion, the guides being mounted on thebar with their projecting end portions facing each other and adapted toreceive between them portions of the cable wound about the bar, thecable clamping means having a clamp arm pivotally secured to the framecross member, the clamp arm having a cut out portion adapted to grip aportion of the cable and to clamp it against the frame cross member, andthe fastening elements consisting of coacting elements on the frame andsafety belt capable of engaging to secure them together detachably.

3. A safety device for a person in an elevated position near a cable andprovided with a safety belt, the device comprising a frame, cablecarrying means, cable aligning means, cable clamping means, andfastening elements, the frame having two side members, a center crosspiece and a bottom cross piece each extending between and secured to theside members, the cable carrying means consisting of a bar, hinge means,a pin and two cable guides, one end of the bar being pivotally joined toone of the side members by the hinge means, the other end of the barbeing releasably secured to the other side member by the pin, each cableguide having a projecting end portion, the guides being mounted on thebar with their projecting end portions spaced from each other to receivebetween them portions of the cable wound about the bar, the cablealigning means comprising a projection extending outwardly from thecenter cross piece and having a flange at its outer end, the cableclamping means consisting of a clamp arm pivotally secured to the bottomcross piece, coacting jaws on the clamp arm and bottom cross pieceadapted to grip a portionof the cable between them, and the fasteningelements being positioned on the frame and safety belt and being capableof engaging to secure them together detachably.

4. A safety device for a person in an elevated position near a cable andprovided with a safety belt, the device comprising a frame, cablecarrying means, cable aligning means, cable clamping means, and`fastening elements, the frame having two side members, a center crosspiece f and a bottom cross piece each extending between and secured tothe side members, the cable carrying means consisting of a bar, hingemeans, a pin and two cable guides, one end of the bar being pivotallyjoined to one of the side members by the hinge means, the other end ofthe bar being releasably secured to the other side member by the pin,each cable guide having a cuneate projecting end portion, the guidesbeing mounted on the bar with their projecting end portions spaced fromeach other to receive between them portions of the cable wound about thebar, one of the guides being capable of being moved along the bar toadjust the distance between the guides, the cable aligning meanscomprising a projection extending outwardly from the center cross pieceand having a flange at its outer end, the cable clamping meansconsisting of a clamp arm pivotally secured to the bottom cross piece,coacting jaws on the clamp arm and bottom cross piece adapted to grip aportion of the cable between them, and a spring positioned between thebottom cross piece and the clamp arm acting to retain the clamp jaws inclosed position, the fastening elements being positioned on the frameand safety belt and being capable of engaging to secure them togetherdetachably.

5. An escape device comprising vertical frame members, a bar connectedat its ends to said members, a second bar connecting the members to eachother in vertically spaced relation to the first bar, a rope guidesupported between the vertical frame members, said rst bar being adaptedto permit a rope to be wound thereon with portions of the rope extendingabove and below the bar, the second bar having a fixed jaw to clamp saidrope, a lever pivoted to said second-named bar in a horizontal axis tomove vertically and provided with a short arm having a concave jaw toengage the rope and a long jaw, and a coil spring between said lever andthe second named bar.

JACK FRANKEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 450,796 Olmsted Apr. 21, 1891666,879 White Jan. 29, 1901

